1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to artificial fingernails and in particular to an artificial fingernail adapted to conform to varying finger sizes and shapes and a method of making same.
2. The Prior Art
The prior art contains many patents directed to artificial fingernails or other natural fingernail coverings and methods of applying them using various forms of adhesives. See, e.g. U.S. Pat. No. 4,632,134 to Reid; U.S. Pat. No. 4,671,305 to Mann; U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,745,934 and 4,751,935 to Mast et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 4,767,648 to Hokama et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 4,943,462 to Komerska et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,638,835 to Franz et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,699,813 to Carroll; and U.S. Pat. No. 6,394,100 to Chang.
Artificial fingernails are typically made of acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS) plastic. ABS plastic is useful because it bonds with nail glue and is readily dissolved by acetone which facilitates nail removal. However, ABS plastic cracks easily and is relatively inflexible which prevents the artificial nail from conforming to a particular user's finger. As a result, artificial fingernails are made in a variety of sizes. However, fingernail shapes are different, and it is impractical to make nails to accommodate the various shapes for each customer. Instead, artificial fingernails are typically sold in standard sets by size and length, but these sets cannot precisely fit all people.
Another drawback with known artificial fingernails is that their appearance is usually readily distinguishable from natural nails. Generally, the better the artificial fingernail fits at the cuticle area, the more the artificial fingernail will resemble a natural nail. Achieving this fit with artificial fingernails, however, is difficult and often requires considerable skill in shaping and filing the artificial fingernail.
To address the problem of making an artificial fingernail accommodate a specific user's hand, U.S. Pat. No. 6,196,234 to Gifford and U.S. Pat. No. 6,382,217 to Coker et al. make a mold from the user's hand with which to construct a custom-made artificial fingernail. These processes are complicated, and there is still a need for an artificial fingernail that is more universally conformable to varying finger sizes and shapes.